SAC Parameter trading unit said to close amid insider probe

SAC Capital Advisors LP, the hedge- fund firm that’s facing federal insider-trading charges and a money-laundering lawsuit, shuttered one of its trading units, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

Parameter Capital, which was started by Anil Stevens and Glenn Shapiro three years ago to trade financial stocks, managed about $300 million, said the person, who asked not to be named because the information is private. Stevens, 41, plans to start his own firm and take as many as nine people with him, the person said. Shapiro won’t be joining Stevens in his new venture, the person said.

Billionaire Steven A. Cohen has vowed to keep SAC open for business as investors have pulled billions of dollars from its funds. Remaining clients have until Aug. 16 to ask to redeem their capital for the third quarter. Executives at SAC, which oversaw about $14 billion at the start of July, expect to end the year with about $9 billion in assets, the person said.

SAC was granted court approval last week to continue operating until the cases are resolved. The Stamford, Connecticut-based firm was accused by the U.S. government in a July 25 indictment of engaging in an unprecedented insider- trading scheme lasting more than a decade. Regulators last month in an administrative action said Cohen failed to supervise two employees who have been charged with insider trading.

Martoma’s Arrest

The multi-year government probe intensified in November when a former portfolio manager, Mathew Martoma, was arrested and charged with securities fraud.

SAC employees have been searching for new jobs, hoping to land new roles for next year after Cohen has paid their bonuses. SAC employs about 1,000 globally in offices from New York to Hong Kong.

SAC’s Parameter unit was based in New York and started in 2010 with 12 employees. Stevens and Shapiro rejoined SAC at that time after working at Chicago-based hedge-fund firm Balyasny Asset Management LP.